U.S. House passes bill to bar driver's licenses for illegal immigrants

| Friday, February 11, 2005

A bill that would bar states from issuing driver’s licenses
to illegal immigrants has passed the U.S. House and is on its way to the
Senate.

The measure – H.R. 418 – is called the Real ID Act.
Introduced by Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-WI, it would prevent states from
issuing licenses unless the license contained specific information – such as
the person’s full legal name, date of birth, gender, a digital photo and other
required elements. And it would disallow anyone from receiving a license if
they could not prove they were in the country legally.

Applicants would have to prove they are a citizen; a legal
alien; a person with a green card, indicating legal permanent status; a person
granted asylum; a refugee; or some other status that indicated they were
legally here.

The bill also contains other measures, including a section
designed “to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws of the United
States,” and another that would make it easier for the federal government to
complete border fences and other barriers, such as one near San Diego.

The Feb. 10 House vote was 261-161 in favor of the bill.

H.R. 418 has the support of both the White House and the
Republican leadership in Congress, The
Los Angeles Times reported.